


Apartment 4

by henclair



Category: IT (2017)
Genre: ALSO THE BENVERLY IS LESBIAN BENVERLY WINK WONK, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Fluff, Kinda, M/M, Meet-Cute, Secret Admirer, Song fic, woops i forgot eddie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-14
Updated: 2018-01-14
Packaged: 2019-03-04 16:12:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13368384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/henclair/pseuds/henclair
Summary: Mike kept getting notes on his whiteboard from a mysterious admirer from "Apartment" 4.Based on Apartment Four, a song by They Might Be Giants.





	Apartment 4

_I live up in apartment four, i’m on the very next floor, the numbers right on the door. If you ever get bored come knock on my door, the one with the four. - 4_

Mike cocked an eyebrow, reading the note that was written on the whiteboard on his door. It was originally for the delivery men to leave him messages when he missed his packages due to his obscene school workloads and awful class times. He wondered who it could be, he didn’t know his neighbors besides the well meaning fuckboy down the hallway who occasionally gave him gatorade at 2 am. Mike pushed the door open and set his bag down, hopping outside of his room once more to take a photo of the message, before wiping it off, debating writing a note of his own but leaving it blank.

He listened carefully that night, trying to see if he heard any sounds outside of his room, but all he heard was the normal shuffling of the unnamed floormate, maybe he was named Bill? His feet dragging as he headed home, no doubt to make a racket for a few more hours. 

Mike fell asleep counting his sheep in 4s.

There wasn’t a new message next morning, but when he came back from his first class, an intro to Ornithology that he shared with a quiet, lovely, Jewish boy, there was a new note. It was written in a rainbow of board markers and Mike wondered where the culprit got them, since his board only had two: green and black. 

_I live up in apartment number four, where the sound of the drum comes from. Just follow the sound, that's where the four is found.You don't know me, but I remember when you moved into flat number two, that was the day that I knew… (to be cont. ;3)_

Mike snorted at the little badly drawn face on the board. He was seriously considering just heading up to the room now and meeting the culprit. Whoever it was it seemed they had an interest in Mike, whether platonically or romantically he couldn’t tell yet, but he wouldn’t mind either way. Mike liked meeting new people, that was a big part of college that drew him in. And he liked to prove people wrong, and most importantly prove himself right.

Bill gave Mike a friendly smile as he shimmied into a huge, kind of obnoxious, varsity jacket and Mike smiled back at the boy. He took a photo of the note, and Mike smiled as he clicked on the little heart, making the photo go up there with the ones with his friends and family. His two moms were smiling at him from the images on his phone, Ben and Beverly mid laugh the only other besides that and the note picture. Mike shoved his phone in his pocket and wiped off the note, taking one last look at where the writing had been and going in his room to study before his next class.

He was a bit distracted during his math class, but could anyone blame him? He had a mystery and Mike had always loved mystery books, wishing he could investigate but knowing he was more one to just let the mystery expose itself, like he was doing now. 

His class on graphic design was cancelled, so Mike decided to see if the boy from his ornithology class wanted to hang out. Mike discovered the boy’s name was Stan and he was one year older than Mike, loved birds and had eyes for Mike’s fuckboy neighbor, who was actually named Bill. They went to the library and studied for a while, exchanging instagrams and numbers, vowing to study again some time.

Mike walked home with a hop in his step, waving to Bill who smiled sheepishly, obviously not planning on running into anyone as he was shirtless with bundles of laundry in his arms. He laughed and helped his neighbor, listening to the boy speak about how tired he was of their washers being broken in this building. Mike told him of the building his friend Ben lived in with her girlfriend Beverly and how it had multiple free to use machines he himself often took advantage of. Bill thanked him with a joking salute and Mike felt exhausted but like he accomplished something today.

Despite the cancelled class.

Later that night Mike stayed up, listening for the drums his mysterious note writer played. And sure enough there they were, loud and clear at about 11 pm, no doubt annoying the person’s neighbors. But not Mike, who counted the 4 beat measures and drifted off to sleep.

There was a note when he woke up next morning, but this time it was written in obnoxious block letters, smudged and huge for everyone who passed by to see. 

_\- that I was not the only one, who might like the drum that was shaking the floor of apartment four. Come on up to apartment number four, where the noise of the drum comes from. Just follow the sound, that's where the four is found._

Mike noted that at the bottom it said (3/3), realizing the ball was in his court now. He resolved to go meet the person after his class, deciding maybe it would be fun to tell Stan about his mystery before he solved it. He fished his phone out of his pocket and took a photo of the last note, reading through the entire note, now put together with the three photos. It almost sounded like a song, he thought to himself as Mike trudged out the dorm and onto the path towards the science building.

Stan thought it was sketchy, he thought the notes coming from an anonymous source meant Mike could be tricked or made fun of. Mike shook his head and laughed, reassuring Stan that he could handle himself. That and he felt like it was real, he felt like the notes meant something to the person writing them. Stan raised an eyebrow at the lovestruck look Mike had but nonetheless asked for updates on the mystery.

Bill ran into him as Mike hustled through the door of their dorm building, anxious to go meet the person. Bill laughed and helped Mike up from their fall, apologizing and letting Mike hurry off, up to floor 2 where the rooms 3 and 4 were. The level was silent for a moment until the crash of drums came, loud and surprising. Mike jumped a bit.

And then he cautiously, feeling nervous and excited at the prospect of meeting this mystery person, walked towards the door. And sure enough, the sound of the drums came from ‘apartment’ four. Mike knocked and held his breath, hearing a loud crash, _not_ from the drums.

A lanky boy opened the door, slightly sweaty with drumsticks in the back pocket of his obnoxiously ripped jeans. He was wearing a orange and pink hawaiian striped shirt, with two expo markers in the pocket. The boy’s glasses were thick, coke bottle lensed ones that were threatening to slip off with the sweat. Hair sprung out everywhere, curly and dark with a few sickly green streaks.

Mike thought this was love.

“Um hello?” The boy asked, leaning on the doorway. He was a few centimeters shorter than Mike, so they saw eye to eye.

“You’re apartment four right?” He asked, thankful his voice didn’t break. The other boy’s eyes bugged and his cheeks flushed, fingers grabbing a drumstick and twirling it, an unconscious movement.

“I’m Richie.” The boy blurted out, cheeks still burning. He cringed at his words and added on. “Yeah I’m apartment four. Take it you got my dumbass self’s notes?” Mike laughed out loud at that, smiling down at Richie, who’s mouth opened in an ‘O’.

“Yeah, I got your notes, don’t think you’re a dumbass though.” Mike said, slipping into a form of banter that Ben always said was flirting. Richie smiled embarrassedly.

“I just thought you looked, well, really hot every time I saw you and I’ve seen you dancing to your music?” He paused, tapping the drum stick against his thigh anxiously before nervously laughing. “Also you have the voice of a fucking angel dude, I heard you sing in the washing room.” Mike was blushing too now, the boy was really laying it on thick but he didn’t mind one bit.

“That’s,” Mike didn’t know what to say, “really adorable and nice. Thank you.” It was obviously the right thing to say because Richie made a noise a lot like a dying cat and tried to cover his face.

“So, I’m just gonna put my cards out on the table, you want to go on a date? Because like I said I think you’re probably one of the most attractive people I’ve ever seen and you’ve got a heart of gold because you’re neighbors with Bill and he’s never once mentioned you complaining. You don’t gotta say yes but there’s a reason I wrote a fucking song to put on your whiteboard ya know?” He said, making Mike chuckle. 

Mike slipped a hand in his back pocket and stared at Richie’s face, biting his lip in order to not scream his next words. “I’ll go out with you Richie. I’m Mike.” Richie let out a sigh of relief and he leaned even more on the doorway, face closer to Mike’s now.

“Yeah, I know, Bill told me once.” Richie says, smiling smugly for no reason. Mike laughed and leaned even closer, drawn towards Richie in a weird way. Richie sucked in a breath at the proximity.

“He did huh?” Mike asked cocking an eyebrow and smiling. Richie nodded, shrugging ever so slightly, ignoring the fact that they had just exchanged names and now were a breath away.

“So how about tomorrow, or today at 6?” Mike asked, smiling kindly at Richie. “Dinner always seems like the most fun for a first date.” He winked and now the tips of Richie’s ears were red as well as the apples of his cheeks. Richie sputtered for a few moments, obviously flustered at Mike’s implications.

“Tonight?” He suggested hopefully, smiling wider now, crinkles forming at the corner of his own eyes.

“Yeah that works.” Richie breathed out, eyes twinkling and excited. “I’ll see you then?” He said, phrasing it more as a question to see if Mike was going to leave.

“Of course.” Mike said, pulling his hand out of his back pocket and pulling out one of the business cards he always has. Richie took the card curiously and Mike elaborated. “My number’s on there, so we can figure more things out. Because I have a class coming up soon and I should probably show up.” Richie laughed, putting the card in his breast pocket with the expo markers. 

“Yeah, as much as I want to keep you here all to myself it wouldn’t be fair to deprive your teachers of your gorgeous face.” Richie joked, twirling his drum stick up into the air. Mike smirked at the boy. 

“Was that flirting Richie?” He asked smugly. Richie snorted, nodding.

“We’re going on a date later tonight you think I’m not going to flirt with you?” He asked. Mike shook his head, biting his lip happily at the easy banter they fell into already. It had been a while since he dated anyone, or even went on a date, and it had been even longer since it had been with a boy so Mike felt so happy to feel butterflies in his chest again.

“I know you’re going to flirt with me. Just not well.” Mike said with a shrug, trying to elicit a response out of the other boy. Richie squawked indignantly and made a face.

“I’ll see you at 6 at the front.” Richie huffed, sounding slightly miffed but with a small smile playing on the corner of his lips. Mike nodded and moved away from the door, walking down the hallway. He felt Richie’s gaze on him the entire way.

_Mike: i got a date!!!_

_Stan: Name?_

_Mike: richie !!!_

_Stan: Oh dear god you’re going on a date with Richie Tozier._

_Stan: Have fun and GOOD LUCK Mike._

_Mike: stan?? What??_

_Mike: thank you but ???_

_Mike: STAN DON’T LEAVE ME ON READ LIKE THIS_

_Stan: read at 12:48 pm_

_Mike: :/_


End file.
